1.

World Report 2017: Philippines | Human Rights Watch

Rodrigo Duterte took office as president of the Philippines on June 30, 2016. Duterte
campaigned on an explicit platform to kill all of you who make the lives of Filipinos
miserable, including criminal suspects, as part of his vow to solve drugs, criminality, and
corruption in three to six months. At his inauguration, he pledged that his administration
would be sensitive to the states obligations to promote, and protect, fulfill the human
rights of our citizens even as the rule of law shall at all times prevail. During the
governments campaign against illegal drugs, however, Duterte has publicly praised the
extrajudicial killing of suspected drug dealers and drug users.

Philippine human rights groups have linked the campaign and Dutertes often-fiery rhetoric
to a surge of killings by police and unidentified gunmen since he took office, with nearly
4,800 people killed at time of writing. Police say that individuals targeted by police were
killed only after they resisted arrest and shot at police officers, but have provided no
evidence to support the claim. The killings have highlighted the countrys long-standing
problem of impunity for abusive state security forces.

Other key issues confronting the Philippines this past year include the rights of indigenous
peoples, violations of reproductive health rights, child labor, and stigma and discrimination
related to the HIV/AIDS crisis.

Extrajudicial Killings

The Philippines has seen an unprecedented level of killing by law enforcement since
Duterte took office. Police statistics show that from July 1 to November 3, 2016, police
killed an estimated 1,790 suspected drug pushers and users. That death toll constitutes a
nearly 20-fold jump over the 68 such police killings recorded between January 1 and June
15, 2016. Police statistics attribute an additional 3,001 killings of alleged drug dealers and
drug users to unknown vigilantes from July 1 to September 4. The police categorize those
killings as deaths under investigation, but there is no evidence that police are actively
probing the circumstances in which they occurred.

In August, Philippine National Police Director-General Ronald Dela Rosa stated that he
did not condone extrajudicial killings. In September, Police Internal Affairs Service
sources said they were overwhelmed by the scale of police killings and could only probe
a fraction of the deaths.

Duterte has ignored calls for an official probe into these killings. Instead, he has said the
killings show the success of his anti-drug campaign and urged police to seize the
momentum. Key senior officials have endorsed this view. Dutertes top judicial official,
Solicitor-General Jose Calida, defended the legality of the police killings and opined that
the number of such deaths was not enough.
Attacks on Indigenous Peoples

In March 2016, some 6,000 protesters, primarily indigenous peoples, farmers, and their
supporters from drought-stricken areas in North Cotabato and Bukidnon provinces
gathered in Kidapawan City in Mindanao to call for government food aid and other
assistance. The police response included shooting live ammunition into the crowd, killing
two people. At time of writing, neither the Senate nor police have released the results of
their respective investigations into the incident.

Reproductive Health Rights

In his July 25 State of the Nation Address, President Duterte pledged to put into full force
and effect the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Law (the RH Law). Such
support is greatly needed because on January 8, 2016, the Philippine Congress eliminated
funding in the 2016 national budget for contraception guaranteed under the RH Law,
cutting vital support for lower-income individuals. Millions of Filipinos rely on state-
provided contraceptive services and supplies for protection from sexually transmitted
infections, and for safe birth-spacing and family planning. The United Nations Population
Fund has criticized the congressional action as a threat to the basic human right to health
as well as the right to reproductive choices.

Human Rights Watch has also documented policies implemented by local governments
designed to derail full enforcement of the RH Law. In Sorsogon City in the Bicol region,
Mayor Sally Lee issued an executive order in February 2015 that declared the city a pro-
life city. Although the order does not explicitly prohibit family planning services and
contraceptive supplies, health workers, and advocates said that the city government gave
oral guidelines to the citys public clinics to cease the distribution of family planning
supplies and instead promote only natural family planning methods such as the Catholic
Church-approved rhythm method.

In Balanga City, the municipal government banned local public health officials and clinics
from procuring or distributing contraceptives. That interruption compelled low-income
people to either buy them from pharmacies or clandestinely from local government-
employed midwives at relatively high cost.

Childrens Rights

In November 2015, the Philippine government detained more than 140 children in advance
of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Manila. The arbitrary
detentions were part of so-called clearing operations aimed at beautifying the city ahead of
the summit. Police detained the children under guard in government facilities for the
homeless and orphans and then released them without charge when the summit concluded.
Child labor in small-scale gold mines remains a serious problem. Children work in unstable
25-meter-deep pits, dive underwater to mine, and process gold with mercury. Small steps
taken by authorities to tackle child laborsuch as vocational training for former child
miners in one mining townhave been undermined by continued lack of regulation of the
small-scale gold mining sector, and by the government's failure to address child labor
systematically.

HIV Epidemic

Although national prevalence is still low, the country has experienced a sharp rise in new
HIV infections in recent years. Prevalence among men who have sex with men (MSM) has
increased 10-fold since 2010. In 2015, the Department of Health reported that at least 11
cities registered HIV prevalence rates among MSM of more than 5 percent, with one
Cebu City, the second largest cityrecording a 15 percent prevalence rate in 2015. That
compares to a 0.2 percent HIV prevalence rate for the Asia-Pacific region and a 4.7 percent
HIV prevalence rate in Sub-Saharan Africa, which has the most serious HIV epidemic in
the world.

There has also been an increase in Cebu City in HIV prevalance among pregnant women,
and in newly recorded infections among people who inject drugs in Cebu City, where the
prevalence rate among such people has been recorded at between 40 and 50 percent. Many
of these new infections among people who inject drugs are due to sharing contaminated
needles.

The growing HIV epidemic is driven by a legal and policy environment hostile to evidence-
based policies and interventions that could help prevent HIV transmission. Such
restrictions are found in national, provincial, and local government policies, and are
compounded by the resistance of the Catholic Church to sexual health education and
condom use. Government policies create obstacles to condom access and HIV testing, limit
educational efforts on HIV prevention, and have ended harm reduction programs in Cebu
City that were previously distributing sterile injecting equipment to people who inject
drugs.

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

The House of Representatives began consideration of House Bill 267, the Anti SOGI
(Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity) Discrimination Act in June 2016. If approved, it
will criminalize discrimination in the employment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
transgender (LGBT) individuals, and prohibit schools from refusing to register or expelling
students on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The Senate has introduced
companion legislation, Senate Bill No. 935, otherwise known as the Anti-Discrimination
Bill (ADB), which had its first hearing in August.
House Bill 267 will also sensitize police and law enforcement officers on LGBT issues and
train them to attend to complaints. These initiatives are essential given that LGBT rights
advocacy groups have warned that hate crimes against LGBT people are on the rise and
that the Philippines has recorded the highest number of murders of transgender individuals
in Southeast Asia since 2008. The bill would also prohibit anti-LGBT discrimination in
access to health care.

Key International Actors

The United States remains a key source of military financial assistance, with the Obama
administration allotting US$120 million for 2016. Earlier military financing was
conditioned on improvements of the human rights situation in the Philippines, but this
conditionality has been lifted as part of the Obama administrations so-called Asia pivot.
President Duterte has expressed dissatisfaction with US-Philippines relations, even saying
he is willing to expel US military personnel stationed in the Philippines, but conceded that
the country still needs US military help because of the South China Sea dispute with China.

Other countries such as Canada and Australia, as well as the European Union, continue to
provide assistance to the Philippines for, among other things, capacity-building programs
to improve the human rights situation. Spain has given funds and resources to the national
Philippine Commission on Human Rights.

In November, the US State Department announced that it had suspended the sale of 26,000
military assault rifles to the Philippine National Police due to human rights concerns raised
by Dutertes abusive war on drugs. The EU has transitioned its rule of law program called
EPJUST II, which involved training the police and other law enforcement agencies, into
GOJUST, which is tasked with instituting justice sector reforms.
2. Philippines | Country report | Freedom of the Press | 2017
Key Developments in 2016:
Rodrigo Duterte was elected president of the Philippines in May. His hostile rhetoric
against the media inflamed an already dangerous environment for journalists and raised
concerns about his governments commitment to upholding press freedom.

In July, Duterte issued an executive order creating the countrys first freedom of
information regime, but its narrow scope and high number of exceptions limit its
impact.

Duterte in October issued an order creating a special task force on journalists safety,
which was empowered to investigate crimes against journalists. However, no major
investigations had begun by years end.

Two people were convicted of murdering journalists in 2016. Nevertheless, the

Philippines remains one of the most dangerous places in the world to practice
journalism, and violent attacks against media workers usually go unpunished.

Executive Summary

Public and private media in the Philippines offer a wide range of views and provide
coverage of controversial topics, including counterinsurgency campaigns and high-level
corruption cases. However, media freedom is compromised by the threat of legal action,
including under criminal defamation laws, and the Philippines remains one of the most
dangerous countries in the world for journalists. Existing legal protections have generally
failed to prevent or punish acts of violence, leading to an entrenched climate of impunity.
And while the media collectively offer a broad spectrum of viewpoints, outlets are often
accused of providing sensationalist content rather than investigative journalism and useful
analysis.

Hostile rhetoric toward members of the media by Duterte further exacerbated an already
perilous situation for journalists in the Philippines; Duterte, for example, weeks after his
election asserted that corrupt reporters are not exempted from assassination.
Journalists who investigated the Duterte administrations role in extrajudicial killings
carried out as part of its war on drugs frequently faced harassment and death threats. In a
move designed to address journalists longstanding concerns about their safety, President
Duterte in October issued an order creating the Presidential Task Force on Violations of
the Right to Life, Liberty, and Security of the Members of the Media, which was
empowered to investigate crimes against journalists. However, no major investigations
were initiated by years end.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), three reporters were murdered in
2016. Though none of the killings could be definitively linked to the victims work, each
had reported on sensitive issues, including official corruption and organized crime. While
two people were convicted of murdering journalists in 2016, impunity for such crimes
remains the norm.

Despite an ongoing campaign by a coalition of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs),

the country lacks a robust freedom of information law, and national security and privacy
justifications are regularly employed to obstruct access to government information. In July
2016, Duterte issued an executive order that established a limited access to information
regime over the countrys executive branch. However, transparency advocates criticized
the orders long list of exceptions, which they said effectively nullified its utility. The order
did not apply to the legislature or judicial system.

Legal Environment: 14 / 30
The constitution guarantees freedom of speech and of expression. However, in 2016 these
guarantees were undermined by President Duterte, whose antagonistic rhetoricincluding
a May declaration that corrupt journalists are not exempted from assassination
contributed to a hostile environment for the press. National security legislation introduced
in 2007 can be used to curb journalists traditional rights and access to sources, as can the
National Security Clearance System, which was designed to protect and ensure the
integrity and sanctity of classified information against enemies of the state.

Existing legal protections have failed to prevent or punish violence against journalists,
leading to an entrenched climate of impunity. The trial for the alleged perpetrators of the
2009 Maguindanao massacre, in which 58 civiliansincluding 32 journalistswere killed
when gunmen launched an ambush intended to prevent a local politician from filing his
candidacy for governor, continued in 2016. The process has featured violent witness
intimidation as well as the killings of a number of witnesses, and only a portion of the 197
suspects have been arraigned. However, the National Police Commission dismissed 21
officers and suspended another 11 in December 2015 for misconduct, after finding that
they had failed to intervene as they witnessed the massacre while on duty.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) ranked the Philippines as the fourth-worst
country in the world for impunity in 2016. According to the Philippine Center for
Investigative Journalism, out of the more than 170 court cases that have been brought
against suspects in the murders of journalists since 1986, fewer than 20 have led to
convictions. However, 2016 saw a few exceptions to this general trend. In June, a former
police officer was convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison for the 2010 murder of the
radio journalist Desiderio Camangyan. And in August, the former mayor of the
municipality of Lezo was sentenced to 14 years in prison for the 2004 homicide of
broadcaster Herson Hinolan.
Defamation is a criminal offense that can be punished with prison terms and large fines.
For nearly two decades, journalists and advocacy groups have been frustrated in their
campaign to decriminalize libel and defamation. Cases continue to be filed against
journalists whose reporting angers officials and other powerful individuals.

Weaknesses in the judicial system often affect the handling of cases related to media
freedom. Those with the means to hire strong legal representation are able to manipulate
the technicalities of the law in their favor, or delay cases to the point where justice is
effectively denied.

National security and privacy justifications are regularly employed to obstruct the publics
access to government information. In July 2016, President Duterte issued an executive
order that established a limited access to information regime over the countrys executive
branch. However, transparency advocates criticized the orders long list of exceptions,
which they said effectively nullified its utility. Moreover, the order covers only information
held by the executive branch and does not apply to the legislature or judicial system. An
access to information law that would cover the entire government has been stalled for years
despite a vigorous campaign by civil society organizations.

There are no restrictive licensing requirements for newspapers or journalists, and the
country has numerous journalists associations.

Political Environment: 20 / 40
While the media collectively offer a range of views, reporting by private outlets tends to
reflect the political or business interests of their owners and financial supporters. Both the
private media and the many publicly owned television and radio stations address
controversial topics, including alleged election fraud, ongoing counterinsurgency
campaigns, and high-level corruption cases. However, the countrys outlets are often
accused of providing shallow and provocative content as opposed to investigative
journalism and useful analysis.

In October 2016, a watchdog group, the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility,
issued a report on its monitoring of a series of television news specials that marked the first
100 days of the Duterte administration, and evaluated the new administrations activities
during that period. The group found that the outlets were generally deferential to the
president, and lacked substantive coverage of the human rights implications of Dutertes
drug war. However, the study also noted that some newspapers, since Dutertes
inauguration, had offered more critical perspectives.

A censorship board has the power to edit or ban content for both television and film, but
government censorship does not typically affect political material. Politically motivated
libel cases and the threat of violence, including aggressive online harassment, leads some
journalists and media outlets to practice self-censorship.
Journalists are subject to harassment, threats, stalking, illegal arrests, raids on their outlets,
and murder. Hostile rhetoric from President Duterte has further inflamed the already
dangerous environment for journalists in the country. Media investigations into the Duterte
administrations role in extrajudicial killings carried out as part of its war on drugs have
been followed by harassment and threats of murder and rape against the journalists
conducting them. According to CPJ, three journalists were murdered in 2016. Though none
of the killings could be definitively linked to the victims work, each reported on sensitive
social and political issues, including antidrug operations, corruption, and organized crime.

In October, President Duterte issued an administrative order creating the Presidential Task
Force on Violations of the Right to Life, Liberty and Security of the Members of the Media,
a body established to investigate crimes against journalists. However, no major
investigations had begun by years end.

Economic Environment: 10 / 30
Most media outlets are privately owned. A wide variety of views is presented on state
television and radio. There are hundreds of newspaper titles. Private television ownership
is concentrated, with the two largest media networks, ABS-CBN and GMA-7, controlled
by wealthy families with interests in other sectors of the economy; together the networks
reach more than 80 percent of television audiences. Radio is also a popular medium, and
there are more than 600 stations in the country. ABS-CBN and GMA-7 are also major
players in radio, reaching nearly 50 percent of FM listeners.

Just over 55 percent of the population accessed the internet in 2016. Internet use is not
restricted, and Filipinos are among the regions most active users of social media such as
YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, which often carry news content. Fixed-line broadband
penetration remains low, particularly in rural areas, and many users access the internet
through their mobile phones.

The practice of using bribes or strategic favors to elicit positive coverage is widespread;
it is a subject openly debated among journalists, and various organizations offer ethics
training in an effort to combat bribery. In another common practice known as block-timing,
individuals or groups lease airtime from broadcast stations using their own sponsors.
Block-time programs are often designed to promote or attack political interests, especially
during election campaigns, though they are also used by local environmental, human rights,
or anticorruption activists. These programs are prone to sensationalism and unethical
practices, and their hosts are frequently victims of violence.

Job security is tenuous for many journalists, as salaries are small and employment
uncertain, and contractual work continues to replace permanent positions. Some reporters
are expected to seek advertisers to supply revenue for their own wages.
OFFICE TO MONITOR AND COMBAT TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

2017 Trafficking in Persons Report

Tier 1

PHILIPPINES: Tier 1

The Government of the Philippines fully meets the minimum standards for the elimination
of trafficking. The government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts
during the reporting period; therefore, the Philippines remained on Tier 1. The government
demonstrated serious and sustained efforts by convicting and punishing more traffickers,
identifying more victims through proactive screening procedures, and expanding its efforts
to prevent trafficking of Filipino migrant workers. Although the government meets the
minimum standards, it did not expand the availability and quality of protection and
assistance services for trafficking victims, particularly mental health care and services for
male victims. Further, the government did not vigorously investigate and prosecute
officials allegedly involved in trafficking crimes or expand its pilot program to address the
backlog of trafficking cases in the courts.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE PHILIPPINES

Increase the availability of specialized comprehensive services that address the specific
needs of trafficking victims, with a particular focus on expanding access to mental health
care and services for male victims; increase efforts to achieve expedited victim-centered
prosecution of trafficking cases, especially in cases involving child victims; increase efforts
to investigate and prosecute officials for trafficking and trafficking-related offenses;
increase efforts to identify internal labor trafficking victims, especially children, and
prosecute labor trafficking cases; expand the victim and witness protection program to
cover an increased percentage of trafficking victims throughout criminal justice
proceedings; develop and implement programs aimed at reducing the demand for
commercial sex acts, including child sex tourism and online child sexual exploitation;
expand government support for long-term specialized services for trafficking victims that
may be provided by the government or NGOs; expand efforts to prevent re-traumatization
caused by multiple interviews and facilitate timely reintegration of child victim witnesses
with community-based follow-up services; increase training for community members and
military and law enforcement personnel on appropriate methods to protect children
officially disengaged from armed groups and vigorously investigate allegations of abuse
by officials; and develop and implement a data collection system across Interagency
Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) agencies to facilitate monitoring, analysis, and
reporting of government-wide anti-trafficking activities, including victim identification,
services provided, investigations, prosecutions, and convictions disaggregated by common
data elements such as type of trafficking and age and sex of identified victims.
PROSECUTION

The government maintained law enforcement efforts. The 2003 and 2012 anti-trafficking
acts criminalize sex and labor trafficking and prescribe penalties of six years to life
imprisonment plus fines of up to 5 million pesos ($100,820), which are sufficiently
stringent and commensurate with those prescribed for other serious crimes, such as rape.
The law defines purchasing commercial sex acts from a child as a trafficking offense. From
April 1 to December 31, 2016, the National Bureau of Investigation Anti-Human
Trafficking Division (AHTRAD), the Philippine National Police Women and Childrens
Protection Center (WCPC), which has responsibility for police investigations of trafficking
cases, and IACAT Taskforces investigated 553 suspected trafficking cases, including
conducting 109 surveillance operations and 55 raids, compared with 329 cases investigated
in 2015. These actions led to the arrest of 272 suspects, an increase from 151 in 2015.
During the reporting period, the government initiated prosecution of 441 alleged traffickers
(569 in 2015) and secured convictions of 55 traffickers (42 traffickers in 2015). These cases
involved 131 victims, 78 of whom were children. Of the 20 labor trafficking cases
prosecuted, none resulted in a conviction. Sentences imposed ranged from 15 years to life
imprisonment, with most offenders sentenced to life imprisonment. The government filed
no criminal cases to punish the recruitment and use of child soldiers by armed groups
operating in areas affected by the ongoing insurgency.

At the close of the reporting period, more than 1,100 trafficking cases filed in court in 2016
or in previous years remained pending in the judicial system due to endemic inefficiencies
such as non-continuous trials, large caseloads, limited resources, and in some cases,
corruption. In addition, delays in allocating funds to IACAT taskforces reportedly reduced
the number of raids during the reporting period. Although the government convicted four
perpetrators of online sexual exploitation of children, police and prosecutors reported
challenges with these cases, including difficulty in obtaining search warrants, insufficient
personnel, inadequate resources for operations logistics and computer evidence analysis,
and the need for training on presenting digital evidence in court. During the reporting
period, the governments investigation and prosecution of these cases relied substantially
on the support and cooperation of foreign law enforcement and NGOs. Although the
government regularly collected data on law enforcement investigation and cases filed with
prosecutors offices and the courts, a lack of case-specific information impeded analysis of
anti-trafficking enforcement efforts.

The government increased its efforts to provide anti-trafficking training to its officials.
IACAT taskforces conducted 269 trainings in 2016, including 20 online seminars, reaching
more than 6,800 government officials, including investigators, prosecutors, labor officers,
and social service personnel, and more than 14,000 civil society representatives. In
addition, the IACAT Secretariat, the WCPC, the Bureau of Immigration (BI), the
Philippine Judicial Academy, and the Department of Labor and Employment conducted
specialized training on anti-trafficking topics relevant for judges, prosecutors, law
enforcers, social workers, and labor focal persons; more than 3,400 individuals attended
these sessions, the majority of whom were government officials. The government also
partnered with NGOs and international organizations on the delivery of numerous training
sessions on human trafficking enforcement and protection in Manila, Cebu, and in
Typhoon Haiyan-affected areas. Philippine officials continued to cooperate with six other
governments to pursue international law enforcement action against suspected foreign
traffickers in 12 cases, most of which involved sexual exploitation of children.

During the reporting period, the government charged two police officers with sex
trafficking in a case involving online sexual exploitation of minors; the trial of a
Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) official charged with trafficking was pending. The
BI investigated 31 potential trafficking cases involving allegedly complicit immigration
officers; four BI officers were relieved of their duties and two officers were under
preliminary investigation before the prosecutors office.

PROTECTION

The government maintained protection efforts. Although the government did not report
comprehensive statistics for the total number of victims identified and assistance provided,
the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) reported serving 1,713
possible trafficking victims, of whom 1,434 were female, compared with 1,465 victims in
2015. DSWD reported assisting 530 victims of illegal recruitment, 465 victims of sex
trafficking and 232 victims of labor trafficking. DFA, in collaboration with host
governments, NGOs, and international organizations, assisted 348 Filipino potential
victims in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. DFA disbursed 1.6
million pesos ($33,160) from its Assistance to Nationals Fund exclusively for trafficking
victim protection and assistance and expended 209,700 pesos ($4,230) for legal assistance
to trafficking victims. Through its hotline, the Commission of Filipinos Overseas (CFO)
assisted 20 possible trafficking victims, of whom 15 were female and five minors. CFO
allocated 800,000 pesos ($16,130) for direct assistance to trafficking victims and their
families. The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) reported
identifying 140 adult trafficking victims, all but two of whom were victims of domestic
servitude, but did not report information about services provided to these victims. The
government continued to implement formal procedures to identify victims in the
Philippines and overseas and to refer them to official agencies or NGO facilities for care.
Philippine officials identified victims through law enforcement operations, border
screenings, reports to embassies abroad, and calls to the national anti-trafficking help line.

The government, through its recovery and reintegration program and in partnership with
NGOs, provided victims with temporary shelter, psycho-social support, medical services,
legal assistance, livelihood assistance, and skills training. It sustained an allocation of
approximately 23 million pesos ($463,790) to implement this program. DSWD continued
to operate 44 residential care facilities and two halfway houses at border entry points,
which provided services to victims of trafficking and other forms of exploitation, but it did
not report the number of trafficking victims who received temporary shelter. No DSWD
shelter is designated solely for the specialized care of for trafficking victims. Available
shelter and other assistance services remained inadequate to address the specific needs of
victims, including child victims of online sexual exploitation and male victims. Budget
constraints continued to limit victim access to mental health services. Child sex trafficking
victims who resided in a shelter and participated as witnesses in prosecutions were often
interviewed multiple times and remained in the shelter through the time required for the
court case, which may have added additional trauma and delayed reintegration. Adult
victims residing in shelters were permitted to leave unchaperoned, provided there were no
threats to their personal security or psychological care issues. During the reporting period,
Philippine officials maintained a temporary shelter for male Filipino trafficking victims in
Saudi Arabia. NGOs delivered the vast majority of specialized services to trafficking
victims, although the government provided an unknown funding amount to one NGO-run
shelter. The lack of long-term care, absence of mental health services, and familial
involvement in facilitating exploitation continued to leave many victims vulnerable to re-
trafficking.

In Mindanao, where protracted armed conflict and reports of recruitment and use of child
soldiers by armed groups continued, the government, in collaboration with international
organizations, established a hotline and conducted three Monitoring, Reporting, and
Response System (MRRS) workshops for 83 lawyers, investigators, and human rights
advocates to facilitate reporting of grave human rights violations, including child
soldiering. The national government issued a circular to local government units, instructing
them to adopt the MRRS, and the military issued a circular on child protection. The Armed
Forces of the Philippines (AFP) reported the rescue or surrender of 19 children from the
New Peoples Army between January and August 2016, but it did not report information
about services to them. Through an action plan developed by the UN and the Moro Islamic
Liberation Front (MILF), approximately 178 children were disengaged from armed groups
during the reporting period and, in consultation with national and regional governments,
an international organization initiated a program to assist children disengaged from armed
groups. There were reports soldiers of the AFP detained and interrogated children, and in
one instance tortured a child, suspected of associating with armed groups. The Commission
on Human Rights is investigating the case of alleged torture. Also during the reporting
period, municipal authorities worked to reintegrate a child who has been working at an
AFP camp for three years in a non-combat role.

Under its witness protection program, justice officials protected witnesses from reprisals
by providing security, immunity from criminal prosecution, housing, livelihood and travel
expenses, medical benefits, education, and vocational placement. During the reporting
period this program assisted nine additional victims of trafficking and continued to provide
services to 98 victims enrolled in previous years. Judicial officials used restitution
provisions and awarded damages to victims; however, these monetary penalties imposed
upon offenders often went unpaid due to perpetrators financial incapacity or the complex
legal process required when a convicted trafficker is able to pay. NGOs confirmed
government officials did not punish victims for unlawful acts committed as a result of being
subjected to trafficking. While the government did not identify foreign victims in the
Philippines during the reporting period, it had long-term alternatives to deportation of
victims to countries where victims may face hardship or retribution.

PREVENTION

The government maintained its robust efforts to prevent trafficking. The government
conducted a multi-stakeholder assessment of implementation of its 2012-2016 strategic
plan to combat trafficking and drafted, but did not release, its third strategic plan covering
2017-2021. The IACAT, which includes three NGO members, and other government anti-
trafficking taskforces met regularly during the reporting period to share information and
coordinate interagency policies. The IACATs budget increased slightly from 93.2 million
pesos ($1.88 million) in 2015 to 93.9 million pesos ($1.89 million) in 2016. The CFO
continued its anti-trafficking national prevention campaign and reached 9,400 individuals
in 18 provinces. The POEA launched a social media campaign to educate people about
illegal recruitment that reached 1,736,818 social media users and expanded access to its
pre-employment orientation seminars, required for workers hired by licensed recruitment
agencies, by offering them online. During the reporting period, 851,170 individuals
completed seminars that provided information about worker protection, legal modes of
recruitment, employment procedures for overseas work, and government services available
to overseas foreign workers.

POEA officials investigated 108 cases, involving 245 complainants, of illegal recruitment
in 2016; four of 35 cases referred for prosecution resulted in a conviction, compared with
six illegal recruitment convictions in 2015. AHTRAD separately reported investigating
248 illegal recruitment cases. The POEA filed 2,137 administrative charges against
licensed agencies for fraudulent employment offers or collecting exorbitant fees resulting
in the cancellation of 49 agencies licenses. The BI Travel Control and Enforcement Unit
continued to screen departing passengers in accordance with departure requirements and
reported 667 potential cases of human trafficking for further investigation and identified
601 possible victims of illegal recruitment. Despite stopping 118 foreign registered sex
offenders from entering the country, local and foreign demand for the countrys vast
commercial sex trade remained high and the governments efforts to reduce the demand
for commercial sex acts were negligible. The government provided anti-trafficking training
to Philippine troops and law enforcement officers prior to their deployment abroad on
international peacekeeping missions. During the reporting period, the DFA provided
training on human trafficking for its diplomatic personnel prior to overseas deployment,
formally launched its handbook on trafficking, and issued new guidelines to its foreign
service personnel about employment of personal staff.
TRAFFICKING PROFILE

As reported over the past five years, the Philippines is a source country and, to a lesser
extent, a destination and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to sex
trafficking and forced labor. An estimated 10 million Filipinos work abroad, and a
significant number of these migrant workers are subjected to sex and labor trafficking
predominantly via debt bondagein the fishing, shipping, construction, education, home
health care, and agricultural industries, as well as in domestic work, janitorial service, and
other hospitality-related jobs, particularly across the Middle East, Asia, and North
America. Traffickers, typically in partnership with small local networks, engage in
unscrupulous recruitment practices that leave migrant workers vulnerable to trafficking,
such as charging excessive fees and confiscating identity documents. Illicit recruiters use
student, intern, and exchange program visas to circumvent the Philippine government and
destination countries regulatory frameworks for foreign workers.

Forced labor and sex trafficking of men, women, and children within the country remains
a significant problem. Women and children from indigenous communities and remote areas
of the Philippines are the most vulnerable to sex trafficking, and some are vulnerable to
domestic servitude and other forms of forced labor. Men are subjected to forced labor and
debt bondage in the agricultural, fishing, and maritime industries. Many people from
impoverished families and conflict areas in Mindanao, Filipinos returning from abroad
without documents, and internally displaced persons in typhoon-affected communities are
subjected to domestic servitude, forced begging, forced labor in small factories, and sex
trafficking in Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, central and northern Luzon, and urban areas in
Mindanao. Trafficking also occurs in tourist destinations, such as Boracay, Angeles City,
Olongapo, Puerto Galera, and Surigao, where there is a high demand for commercial sex
acts. Child sex trafficking remains a pervasive problem, typically abetted by taxi drivers
who have knowledge of clandestine locations. Although the availability of child sex
trafficking victims in commercial establishments declined in some urban areas, young
Filipino girls, boys, and sibling groups are increasingly coerced to perform sex acts for live
internet broadcast to paying foreigners; this typically occurs in private residences or small
internet cafes, and may be facilitated by victims family members and neighbors. NGOs
report high numbers of child sex tourists in the Philippines, many of whom are citizens of
Australia, Japan, the United States, Canada, and countries in Europe; Filipino men also
purchase commercial sex acts from child trafficking victims. Organized crime syndicates
allegedly transport sex trafficking victims from China through the Philippines en route to
other countries. The UN reports armed groups operating in the Philippines, including the
MILF, New Peoples Army, Moro National Liberation Front, the Abu Sayyaf Group, and
the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, continue to recruit and use children, at times
through force, for combat and noncombat roles.

Officials, including those in diplomatic missions, law enforcement agencies, and other
government entities, allegedly have been complicit in trafficking or allowed traffickers to
operate with impunity. Some corrupt officials, particularly those working in immigration,
allegedly accept bribes to facilitate illegal departures for overseas workers, reduce
trafficking charges, or overlook unscrupulous labor recruiters. Reports in previous years
asserted police conduct indiscriminate or fake raids on commercial sex establishments to
extort money from managers, clients, and victims. Some personnel working at Philippine
embassies reportedly withhold back wages procured for their domestic workers, subject
them to domestic servitude, or coerce sexual acts in exchange for government protection
services.
Alternative Learning Systems

The alternative learning systems in the Philippines caters to the needs

of the following: elementary and secondary school dropouts, kids that
are older than the normal age for a specific grade level (this may be a
12 year old in grade 4), unemployed adults that havent finished their
education degree, indigenous people, people with disabilities or are
mentally challenged, and inmates. It is possible to have both informal
and formal references for these alternative learning systems because
these are apart from the formal teaching institutions. Although
similarly to the formal teaching institutions, there will be a diagnostic
test for everyone that will participate in order to gauge the level they
are at in terms of the skills needed per grade level. If there are people
that do not have the basic skills such as reading and writing there will
be an additional program that will help them first learn the basics
before taking the diagnostic test. There will be a specific number of
hours that is required of the student in order for him/her to be able to
finish the program. There will be a final assessment to test the
comprehensive knowledge of the student. If the students passes
he/she will be given a certificate that is signed by the secretary of the
department of education allowing the student to apply for college
degrees, work, formal training programs, and can re-enroll in
elementary/secondary education in formal teaching institutions.

There are other avenues of alternative learning in the Philippines such

as the Radio-Based Instruction (RBI) Program. This is designed to give
the lectures through a radio transmission making it easier for people
to access wherever they are. The goal is for the listeners to receive
the same amount of education that people that sit in classroom
lectures.

Non-formal technical and vocational education is assumed by

institutions usually accredited and approved by TESDA: center-based
programs, community-based programs and enterprise-based training,
or the Alternative Learning System (ALS).[58] The Institutions may be
government operated, often by provincial government, or private. They
may offer programs ranging in duration from a couple of weeks to two-
year diploma courses. Programs can be technology courses like
automotive technology, computer technology, and electronic
technology; service courses such as caregiver, nursing aide, hotel and
restaurant management; and trades courses such as electrician,
plumber, welder, automotive mechanic, diesel mechanic, heavy
vehicle operator & practical nursing. Upon graduating from most of
these courses, students may take an examination from TESDA to
obtain the relevant certificate or diploma.

In the country, there are a number of people particularly kids that do

not receive proper education from formal education institutions
because of various reasons. These reasons usually pertain to financial
problems.

Issues[edit]

When it comes to influence, the educational system of the Philippines

has been affected immensely by the country's colonial history
including the Spanish period, American period, and Japanese rule and
occupation. Although having been significantly influenced by all its
colonizers with regard to the educational system, the most influential
and deep-rooted contributions arose during the American occupation
(1898); it was during this aforementioned period that:

1. English was introduced as the primary language of instruction

and
2. A public education system was first established - a system
specifically patterned after the United States school system and
further administered by the newly established Department of
Instruction.

Similar to the United States, the Philippines has had an extensive and
extremely inclusive system of education including features such as
higher education.

The present Philippine educational system firstly covers six years of

compulsory education (from grades 1 to 6), divided informally into two
levels - both composed of three years. The first level is known as the
Primary level and the second level is known as the Intermediate level.
However, although the Philippine educational system has extensively
been a model for other Southeast Asian countries, in recent years
such a matter has no longer stood true, and such a system has been
deteriorated - such a fact is especially evident and true in the
country's more secluded poverty-stricken regions.

Most the Philippines faces several issues when it comes to the

educational system.

Quality[edit]

First of which, is the quality of education. In the year 2014, the

National Achievement Test (NAT) and the National Career Assessment
Examination (NCAE) results show that there had been a decline in the
quality of Philippine education at the elementary and secondary levels.
The students performance in both the 2014 NAT and NCAE were
excessively below the target mean score. Having said this, the poor
quality of the Philippine educational system is manifested in the
comparison of completion rates between highly urbanized cities of
Metro Manila, which is also happens to be not only the country's
capital region but the largest metropolitan area in the Philippines and
other places in the country such as Mindanao and Eastern Visayas.
Although Manila is able to boast a primary school completion rate of
approximately 100 percent, other areas of the nation, such as Eastern
Visayas and Mindanao, hold primary school completion rate of only 30
percent or even less. This kind of statistic is no surprise to the
education system in the Philippine context, students who hail from
Philippine urban areas have the financial capacity to complete at the
very least their primary school education.

Budget[edit]

The second issue that the Philippine educational system faces is the
budget for education. Although it has been mandated by the Philippine
Constitution for the government to allocate the highest proportion of
its government to education, the Philippines remains to have one of
the lowest budget allocations to education among ASEAN countries.
Affordability[edit]

The third prevalent issue the Philippine educational system

continuously encounters is the affordability of education (or lack
thereof). A big disparity in educational achievements is evident across
various social groups. Socioeconomically disadvantaged students
otherwise known as students who are members of high and low-
income poverty-stricken families, have immensely higher drop-out
rates in the elementary level. Additionally, most freshmen students at
the tertiary level come from relatively well-off families.

Drop-out rate (Out-of-school youth)[edit]

France Castro, the secretary of Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT),

stated that there is a graved need to address the alarming number of
out-of-school youth in the country. The Philippines overall has 1.4
million children who are out-of-school, according to UNESCO's data,
and is additionally the only ASEAN country that is included in the top 5
countries with the highest number of out-of-school youth. In 2012, the
Department of Education showed data of a 6.38% drop-out rate in
primary school and a 7.82% drop-out rate in secondary school. Castro
further stated that "the increasing number of out-of-school children is
being caused by poverty. The price increases in prices of oil,
electricity, rice, water, and other basic commodities are further
pushing the poor into dire poverty." Subsequently, as more families
become poorer, the number of students enrolled in public schools
increases, especially in the high school level. In 2013, the Department
of Education estimated that there are 38, 503 elementary schools
alongside 7,470 high schools.[59]

Mismatch[edit]

There is a large mismatch between educational training and actual

jobs. This stands to be a major issue at the tertiary level and it is
furthermore the cause of the continuation of a substantial amount of
educated yet unemployed or underemployed people. According to
Dean Salvador Belaro Jr., the Cornell-educated Congressman
representing 1-Ang Edukasyon Party-list in the House of
Representatives, the number of educated unemployed reaches around
600,000 per year. He refers to said condition as the "education gap".

Brain drain[edit]

Brain drain is a persistent problem evident in the educational system

of the Philippines due to the modern phenomenon of globalization, [60]
with the number of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who worked
abroad at any time during the period April to September 2014 was
estimated at 2.3 million.[61] This ongoing mass immigration
subsequently induces an unparalleled brain drain alongside grave
economic implications. Additionally, Philippine society hitherto is
footing the bill for the education of millions who successively spend
their more productive years abroad. Thus, the already poor
educational system of the Philippines indirectly subsidizes the opulent
economies who host the OFWs.

Social divide[edit]

There exists a problematic and distinct social cleavage with regard to

educational opportunities in the country. Most modern societies have
encountered an equalizing effect on the subject of education. This
aforementioned divide in the social system has made education
become part of the institutional mechanism that creates a division
between the poor and the rich.[55]

Lack of facilities and teacher shortage in public schools[edit]

There are large-scale shortages of facilities across Philippine public

schools - these include classrooms, teachers, desks and chairs,
textbooks, and audio-video materials. According to 2003 Department
of Education Undersecretary Juan Miguel Luz, reportedly over 17
million students are enrolled in Philippine public schools, and at an
annual population growth rate of 2.3 per cent, about 1.7 million babies
are born every year which means that in a few years time, more
individuals will assert ownership over their share of the (limited)
educational provisions.[55] To sum it up, there are too many students
and too little resources. Albeit the claims the government makes on
increasing the allocated budget for education, there is a prevalent
difficulty the public school system faces with regard to shortages.
Furthermore, state universities and colleges gradually raise tuition so
as to have a means of purchasing facilities, thus making tertiary
education difficult to access or more often than not, inaccessible to
the poor. However, it is worth taking note of what the Aquino
administration has done in its five years of governance with regard to
classroom-building - the number of classrooms built from 2005 to the
first half of the year 2010 has tripled. Additionally, the number of
classrooms that were put up from the year 2010 to February 2015 was
recorded to be at 86,478, significantly exceeding the 17,305
classrooms that were built from 2005 to 2010 and adequate enough to
counterbalance the 66,800 classroom deficit in the year 2010.

In President Aquino's fourth state of the nation address (SONA), he

spoke of the government's achievement of zero backlog in facilities
such as classrooms, desks and chairs, and textbooks which has
addressed the gap in the shortages of teachers, what with 56,085 new
teachers for the 61, 510 teaching items in the year 2013. However, the
data gathered by the Department of Education shows that during the
opening of classes (June 2013), the shortages in classrooms was
pegged at 19, 579, 60 million shortages when it came to textbooks, 2.5
million shortages with regard to chairs, and 80, 937 shortages of water
and sanitation facilities. Furthermore, 770 schools in Metro Manila,
Cebu, and Davao were considered overcrowded. The Department of
Education also released data stating that 91% of the 61, 510 shortages
in teachers was filled up alongside appointments (5, 425 to be
specific) are being processed.[59]

Issues regarding the K-12[edit]

There is a dispute with regard to the quality of education provided by

the system. In the year 2014, the National Achievement Test (NAT)
and the National Career Assessment Examination (NCAE) results show
that there had been a decline in the quality of Philippine education at
the elementary and secondary levels. The students performance in
both the 2014 NAT and NCAE were excessively below the target mean
score. Having said this, the poor quality of the Philippine educational
system is manifested in the comparison of completion rates between
 highly urbanized city of Metro Manila, which is also happens to be not
only the country's capital but the largest metropolitan area in the
Philippines and other places in the country such as Mindanao and
Eastern Visayas. Although Manila is able to boast a primary school
completion rate of approximately 100 percent, other areas of the
nation, such as Eastern Visayas and Mindanao, hold primary school
completion rate of only 30 percent or even less. This kind of statistic
is no surprise to the education system in the Philippine context,
students who hail from Philippine urban areas have the financial
capacity to complete at the very least their primary school education.

The second issue that the Philippine educational system faces is the
budget for education. Although it has been mandated by the Philippine
Constitution for the government to allocate the highest proportion of
its government to education, the Philippines remains to have one of
the lowest budget allocations to education among ASEAN countries.
The third prevalent issue the Philippine educational system
continuously encounters is the affordability of education (or lack
thereof). A big disparity in educational achievements is evident across
various social groups. Socioeconomically disadvantaged students
otherwise known as students who are members of high and low-
income poverty-stricken families have immensely higher drop-out rates
in the elementary level. Additionally, most freshmen students at the
tertiary level come from relatively well-off families. Lastly, there is a
large proportion of mismatch, wherein there exists a massive
proportion of mismatch between training and actual jobs. This stands
to be a major issue at the tertiary level and it is furthermore the cause
of the continuation of a substantial amount of educated yet
unemployed or underemployed people.

6. Political dynasties in the Philippines

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Read only these topics.

Critical reception[edit]
Various writers wrote articles that analyze and critique politicians that
fall under the domain of a political dynasty. Often, these articles hold
these said persons and families in a critical light.[4] Although political
dynasties have already been present in the Philippines for a significant
period of time, the public has only recently started clamoring for a
change in system.[5] The public support for the bill against political
dynasties has steadily increased because the president, while part of
a dynasty himself, fully supports the passage of the Anti-Dynasty Bill.[6]
In a provincial scale, political dynasties are often held in higher
regard- contrasted with dynasties that oversee a wider public, where
reception is mostly negative. A study that used empirical data
correlated political dynasty presence with socio-economic
development. This study stated that "this partial correlation
coefficient finds a positive relationship between poverty incidence and
the proportion of political dynasties in each province." Although the
study found a correlation, this does not determine whether it is a
causal relationship since poverty is multifaceted.[7]

Influence[edit]

Negative[edit]

One of the more notable theories concerning the negative effects of

political dynasties is a political "Carnegie Effect", named after Andrew
Carnegie. The "Carnegie Effect" is based on Carnegies decision to
give all his wealth to non-family members, where he argues that his
son might have less incentive of working hard if he were to be assured
of his fathers wealth.[8] This idea of inherited wealth and connections
discouraging future generations to work hard can also be attributed to
dynastic politicians. Dynastic politicians have a significant advantage
from the start of their political career They have a statistically higher
probability, due to factors like popularity and incumbency advantage,
to win elections when pitted against politicians with no such political
networks. Dynastic politicians also have generally lower educational
attainment, because of their reliance on dynastic connections rather
than bureaucratic or academic competence for their position.[9]
There is also significant evidence to suggest that Philippine political
dynasties use their political dominance over their respective regions
to enrich themselves, using methods such as graft or outright bribery
of legislators. These kinds of situations arise as conflicts of interests-
political dynasties often hold significant economic power in a
province- and their interests are overrepresented due to dynastic
politics.[10] Another negative effect of political dynasties is that
political dynasties tend to be for the status quo and develop interests
largely separate from the people they were supposed to be serving.
Dynastic candidates, being almost exclusively from the upper classes,
are naturally biased towards defending their own vested economic
interests, which presents conflict of interest problems. Political
dynasties also prevent challengers with potentially effective policy
ideas from being able to take office, which limits the capacity for
bureaucratic responsiveness and administrative effectiveness and
adaptation to new ideas.

Positive[edit]

Political dynasties also have extra incentive to develop their own

jurisdictions. Based on Mancur Olson's theory of political governance
or the "Roving Bandits vs. Stationary Bandits" theory, dynastic
politicians are more likely to pursue long-term development oriented
strategies since they expect to hold power and benefit from their
position for longer. This is usually set in contrast to non-dynastic
politicians who would, under this theory, have less incentive to
develop due to their limited term. Political dynasties can gain benefits
either directly or indirectly through their relatives.[11] Political
dynasties are also responsible for the increase in womens political
participation in politics. Female politicians hailing from political
dynasties can easily get into politics due to their connections.[11]
Political dynasties have the advantage of continuity. The more control
the family has over the government unit, the more members of the
family can occupy positions of power. Political dynasties can use this
continuity by promoting and enacting laws and ordinances that are
long term in nature; with only a slim chance of other candidates
7. World leaders face crises in North Korea and Myanmar at UN

Read only this news item.

September 16, 2017

UNITED NATIONS Facing an escalating nuclear threat from North

Korea and the mass flight of minority Muslims from Myanmar, world
leaders gather at the United Nations starting Monday to tackle these
and other tough challenges from the spread of terrorism to a
warming planet.

The spotlight will be on U.S. President Donald Trump and France's new
leader, Emmanuel Macron, who will both be making their first
appearance at the General Assembly. They will be joined by more than
100 heads of state and government, including Zimbabwe's President
Robert Mugabe, one of Africa's longest-serving leaders who is said to
be bringing a 70-member entourage.

While Trump's speeches and meetings will be closely followed, it will

be North Korea, which Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calls "the
most dangerous crisis that we face today," that will be most carefully
watched. No official event addressing Pyongyang's relentless
campaign to develop nuclear weapons capable of hitting the United
States is on the U.N. agenda, but it is expected to be the No. 1 issue
for most leaders.

Not far behind will be the plight of Myanmar's Rohingya Muslims,

victims of what Guterres calls a campaign of ethnic cleansing that has
driven nearly 400,000 to flee to Bangladesh in the past three weeks.
The Security Council, in its first statement on Myanmar in nine years,
condemned the violence and called for immediate steps to end it.
British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson is hosting a closed meeting on
the crisis Monday, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation's
contact group on the Rohingyas is scheduled to meet Tuesday.
Guterres said leaders would also be focusing on a third major threat
climate change. The number of natural disasters has nearly
quadrupled and he pointed to unprecedented weather events in recent
weeks from Texas, Florida and the Caribbean to Bangladesh, India,
Nepal and Sierra Leone.

While Trump has announced that the United States will pull out of the
2015 Paris Climate Agreement, Macron will be hosting a meeting
Tuesday to spur its implementation. And a late addition to the
hundreds of official meetings and side events during the ministerial
week is a high-level session Monday on the devastation caused by
Hurricane Irma.

Several terrorism-related events are on the agenda. Macron is holding

a meeting Monday with leaders of five African nations Mali,
Mauritania, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad that are putting together a
5,000-strong force to fight the growing threat from extremists in the
vast Sahel region.

A side event Wednesday on "Preventing Terrorist Use of the Internet"

will be attended by senior representatives of major social media
companies. Co-hosts Britain, France and Italy said a global response is
needed "to make the online space a hostile environment for
terrorists."

Trump has accused Iran of supporting terrorists and is threatening to

rip up the 2015 deal to rein in its nuclear program. With a U.S. decision
due in October, ministers from the six parties to the agreement are
expected to meet next week. The five others strongly support the
deal.

Trump has also been critical of the United Nations and has promised
to cut the U.S. contribution to its budget, which is the largest. So some
diplomats were surprised that the United States would sponsor an
event Monday on reforming the 193-member world body.

Trump and Guterres will speak, and the United States has asked all
countries to sign a declaration on U.N. reforms. Over 100 have added
their names, but Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said
Friday that "we are not sure we will sign this declaration."

He said that while "lots of ideas contained in this document are

important and look similar to what the secretary-general proposes,"
U.N. reforms should result from negotiations among all countries
instead of from "a declaration of like-minded countries."

The Security Council is holding a high-level meeting Wednesday on

U.N. peacekeeping operations, which cost nearly $8 billion a year. The
United States, which pays over 28 percent of the peacekeeping
budget, is reviewing all the missions in an effort to cut costs and make
them more effective.

While there are many side events on other global hotspots from
Central African Republic and South Sudan to Libya, Mail and Somalia,
the ministerial meeting will also see sessions on achieving U.N. goals
for 2030 to end extreme poverty and preserve the planet, women's
economic empowerment, migration and conflict prevention a top
priority of the secretary-general.

Germany's U.N. Ambassador Christoph Heusgen said the most

important thing about the General Assembly ministerial session, which
officially begins Tuesday and ends Sept. 25, is the opportunity for
leaders to talk one-on-one or get together in groups.

"I think this is indeed the Super Bowl," he said. "If it didn't exist, one
had to create this opportunity so that can people can talk to each
other."

General Assembly President Miroslav Lajcak reminded member states

that even representatives of countries "with profound disagreements
on fundamental issues will sit side-by-side."

He suggested a simple rule: "Treat every speaker on this podium as if

he or she is our own head of delegation."

"As long as we can use these meeting rooms to talk and reach
compromises in good will, then we all have the collective opportunity
to use the U.N. to make the world a better, and more peaceful place,"
 Lajcak said. "If we don't do this, the failure will lie with us not the
U.N."

9. Redefining rights
SKETCHES By Ana Marie Pamintuan (The Philippine Star) | Updated
September 27, 2017 - 12:00am

Read only this news item

Security, the Philippines told the United Nations, need not be

incompatible with human rights.

True enough. North Koreas Kim Jong-un will agree. So will the
Communist Party of China. It sounds more credible, of course, coming
from Asias most rambunctious democracy.

In reality, much of Asia has always had a problem with Western

concepts of civil liberties and the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. The declaration was passed in 1948 with memories still fresh
of the unspeakable horrors committed during the World War II
Holocaust.

Ive heard representatives of many Asian governments arguing that

each country faces different challenges and the rights declaration is
not a case of one size fits all. This is hardly a new argument. From the
start, when the 18-member UN Commission on Human Rights was
drawing up the universal declaration in 1947, reservations were raised
by the vice chair and representative of China, Peng Chun Chang.

The late US president Franklin Delano Roosevelts widow Eleanor, who

chaired the commission, narrated in her memoir:

Dr. Chang was a pluralist and held forth in charming fashion on the
proposition that there is more than one kind of ultimate reality. The
Declaration, he said, should reflect more than simply Western ideas
and Dr. Humphrey would have to be eclectic in his approach. His
remark, though addressed to Dr. Humphrey, was really directed at Dr.
Malik, from whom it drew a prompt retort as he expounded at some
length the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas. Dr. Humphrey joined
enthusiastically in the discussion, and I remember that at one point Dr.
Chang suggested that the Secretariat might well spend a few months
studying the fundamentals of Confucianism!

Opinion ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1

***

Singapores Lee Kuan Yew argued that economic rights should have
priority over certain civil liberties. The prosperity of his city-state has
been seen as an indication of the success of his ideas.

Asia has prosperous, vibrant democracies, such as Japan and South

Korea. India is thriving in its democratic setting. But why make them
role models when success stories such as Singapore offer an
alternative?

China wont admit it, but its national development tack must have
been inspired by the Singaporean model. Lees kindred contemporary,
Malaysias Mahathir Mohamad, subscribed to similar ideas about
human rights.

Some years ago I sat through an official briefing in Singapore about its
concept of press freedom. In a nutshell, the information minister
explained that media organizations are businesses and must be
regulated as tightly as other businesses. Journalists are not elected,
he said, and must disseminate information and express opinions with
utmost responsibility and accountability, subject to state regulation,
and taking into consideration national interest and the greater good.

I know several prominent Filipinos who share the same views about
the role of mass media. China, the only country I have visited where
my regular email from human rights groups such as the Committee to
Protect Journalists are blocked, has similar views.

A few years ago in China, I was handed a copy of the official

declaration of the rights of Chinese citizens. The rights listed in detail
in the pamphlet largely reflect those in the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights. Lest the Chinese start believing that they will soon
have a Western-style free society, however, the pamphlet is also
replete with reminders about the responsibilities of citizens in
exercising the rights. The unwritten message is that irresponsibility in
the exercise of the rights will have unpleasant consequences.

Im not sure if that pamphlet was ever fully disseminated to Chinese

citizens. Back in 2001, a journalist working in southern China told me
that their publication was free to criticize local government officials,
but the military and Communist Party were off-limits. I dont think the
unspoken rules have changed much.

***

The economic success of states such as China and Singapore present

an attractive alternative to societies that abide by the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights.

During the presidency of Corazon Aquino, Lee Kuan Yew scoffed

openly at Philippine democracy. There are Filipinos who are also
frustrated over our democratic excesses.

Democratic processes such as elections are used in our country as a

veneer to legitimize the reign of warlords, mafia-type family
businesses, jueteng lords, and now, narco politicians.

While people may be ready to sacrifice certain civil liberties in the

name of economic progress and peace and order, however, the right to
life is a different story.

Because of our broken justice system, Filipinos can look away when
known criminals are executed by police. Pinoys probably wouldnt
mind either if certain abusive, drug-addled lawmakers with a bloated
sense of entitlement are shot and their heads wrapped in packing
tape.

But we can see a different public reaction to the execution of

teenagers, and to police drug raids on private homes that are more
akin to armed robbery.
Even those who think Filipinos exuberant exercise of freedoms
borders on anarchy, and who agree that security measures and the
war on drugs need not be incompatible with human rights, are now
drawing a line as police abuses become brazenly horrific.

People are starting to be sick of summary executions. There are

groups that are now gathering evidence, and teaching others to
document abuses, to hold state forces accountable for gross human
rights violations.

The war on drugs is supposed to make law-abiding citizens safe.

Instead people feel unsafe even in their own homes, with police posing
the most serious threat to public safety.

How much personal freedoms are we willing to sacrifice in the name

of security? Were adding another dimension to the redefinition of
human rights. It should not be a cause for national regret.